1. Field of the Invention
Aspects of this document relate generally to systems and methods of transmitting reminders and informational messages to remote mobile devices.
2. Description of Related Art
The current medical industry standard for appointment reminders, confirmations and general contact with patient is voice contact and relies on either a manual telephone call by office staff or an automated call placed to patients using an automated voice system. The field of dentistry also has a heavy reliance on postcards for patient communications. There are currently a limited number of firms that offer a reminder system for use in medical fields that operate using a voice message via that is backed up voice by an email or text message requesting confirmation. With current systems, many calls are intentionally or unintentionally not answered by the intended recipient which results in a voicemail message being left for the patient. This voicemail then becomes a generic entry in the message cue and since many people are inundated with messages, the informational content of the voicemail may never be received by the patient.
Industry data shows anticipated “no-show” rates of around 20% with unconfirmed (“naked”) appointments which results in thousands of dollars in lost revenue for medical offices every month. While conventional reminder systems may reduce the no show rate, the effect of current systems is a reduction to a no-show rate of approximately 10%, which still results in a high level of lost revenue. Additionally, these systems have high expenditures associated with them due to the cost of postcards and staff time required to make telephone calls.
The concept of sending messages or reminders to wireless mobile devices and requesting a response via SMS or MMS is also well established in the art. See, for example, U.S. Patent Application Publication No. 2008/0062133, which is herein incorporated by reference. However, while current systems and methods in the art may allow for automated reminder messages to be sent to a mobile device, these systems lack the ability to determine or track whether or not a particular messaging format is received by the mobile device.
So as to reduce the complexity and length of the Detailed Specification, and to fully establish the state of the art in certain areas of technology, Applicant herein expressly incorporates by reference all of the following materials identified in each numbered paragraph below.
U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. 2006/0294108, 2006/0098650, 2008/0013705, and 2007/0280431 provide disclosures of automated messaging systems.
U.S. Patent Application Publication Nos. 2003/0058842, 2005/0002510, 2007/0073808, and 2008/0045246 provide disclosures of methods and systems relating to communicating with a mobile device.
Applicants believe that the material incorporated above is “non-essential” in accordance with 37 CFR 1.57, because it is referred to for purposes of indicating the background of the invention or illustrating the state of the art. However, if the Examiner believes that any of the above-incorporated material constitutes “essential material” within the meaning of 37 CFR 1.57(c)(1)-(3), Applicants will amend the specification to expressly recite the essential material that is incorporated by reference as allowed by the applicable rules.